NBC Miami correspondent Mark Potter said there will be a "harsh reaction" from Cuban-Americans to President Obama boosting ties with Cuban president Raul Castro.
Following the announcement that the U.S. was releasing three Cuban spies in exchange for American citizen Alan Gross, Potter said the move suggested a "softening" in relations between the U.S. and Cuba.
"There will be a harsh reaction--a political reaction--to this from leaders in this community," Potter said.
"The older Cubans, the more conservative Cubans, are going to react harshly to this."
The three prisoners were members of ‘the Cuban Five,’ who were imprisoned on charges of espionage after attempting to infiltrate a number of Cuban-American organizations in south Florida.
MSNBC host Jose Diaz-Balart agreed that there would be a strong reaction from the Cuban-American communities that oppose the Castro regime.
"When you have three convicted spies, including people who were behind the death of American citizens, that, I think, there's less gray area from people who don't necessarily see that as being part of the future relations between the united states and the Castro regime," Diaz-Balart said.